Pool ball rack

ABSTRACT

A ball rack for use with pool or pocket billiard tables for locating the object balls in predetermined spread relation to one another on different areas of a pool table to facilitate locating the object balls for playing a new and unique pool game. The rack has an elevated top wall provided with openings through which the balls are displaced downwardly onto the playing surface of the pool table and including resilient rings secured to the openings for engaging and accurately locating the balls on the pool table and before removal of the rack therefrom.

I United States Patent [11] 3,618,944

[72] Inventor James H. Myers 2,492,081 12/1949 Williams 214/1 C 2406 Dalewood Drive, Silver Spring, Md. 3,466.038 9/1969 Hill 273/22 20906 1,115,911 11/1914 Dickinson 273/22 [21] Appl. No. 10,741 294,200 2/1884 Collender. 273/22 [22] Filed Feb. 12, 1970 1,463,845 8/1923 Ryan 273/11 R [45] Patented Nov. 9,1971 1,342,733 6/1920 Austin 214/1 C Primary Examiner-Richard C. Pinkham Assistant Examiner-R. T. Stouffer [54] POOL BALL RACK Attorney-John N. Randolph 6 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 273/22, ST A ball rack for use with pool or pocket billiard 273/l4 tables for locating the object balls in predetermined spread [51] Int. Cl A63d 15/00 relation to one another on diff t areas f a pool table to [50] Field of Search 273/10, 1 1 facflime locating the object balls f p|aying a new and unique 22? 46/1 A; 21 15; 214/1 C; 224/48 pool game. The rack has an elevated top wall provided with o enin s throu h which the balls are dis laced downward] [56] References cued ofito tlEe playifig surface of the pool t ble and including UNITED STATES PATENTS resilient rings secured to the openings for engaging and accu- 1,187,243 6/1916 Bernstein 273/22 rately locating the balls on the pool table and before removal 2,523,965 9/1950 Morrison 46/1 A ofthe rack therefrom.

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FIG. 6.

INVENTOR JAMES H. MYERS FIG.8.

' ATTORNEY POOLBALLRACK SUMMARY It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a novel rack for use in accurately locating object balls in predetermined spaced-apart relation to one another on the playing surface of a pool or pocket billiard table for the play of a new and unique game.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rack including a top wall which is elevated relative to the playing surface of the pool table when the rack is applied thereto and which has openings through which the balls are applied through the rack onto the playing surface, said rack including means for retaining the balls accurately located on the playing surface prior to removal of the rack therefrom.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following descriptionof the drawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of a pool or pocket billiard table showing the rack applied thereto in one position for locating certain of the object balls and showing other of the object balls previously located on the table by the rack;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 2 but showing the object ball displaced downwardly somewhat from its position of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the object ball displaced downwardly from its position of FIG. 3 and into engagement with the playing surface of the table;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged top plan view of one end portion of the rack and showing a plurality of the object balls located thereon;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary bottom plan view of the central portion of the rack, on an enlarged scale relative to FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 7-7 of FIG. 5, and

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 8-8 of FIG. 5.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring more specifically to the drawing, the pool ball rack in its entirety and comprising the invention is designated generally 10 and includes a substantially flat rectangular top wall 11 having a continuous depending flange 12 extending downwardly from the marginal edges thereof and which is disposed substantially perpendicular to the top wall 11, The flange 12 is turned inwardly and back upon itself as seen at 13 for reinforcing the flange and to provide a smooth rounded bottom edge 14 of said flange 12 and which is adapted to rest upon the playing surface 15 of a conventional pool or pocket billiard table 16, as best seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4.

As seen in FIG. 1, the top wall 11 has a centrally disposed opening 15' and four openings 16 one of which is located adjacent each corner of said top wall, and which openings are equally spaced from the opening 15. Said top wall 11 is also provided with four openings 17 and four openings 18 which are disposed in alignment with the central opening 15 and the corner openings 16. The openings 17 are disposed between the corner openings 16' and the openings 18 and said openings 18 are disposed between the center opening 15 and the openings 17. The aligned openings 15', l8, l7 and 16 are equally spaced from one another. Three openings 19 are provided in the top wall 11 between the openings 16 at each end thereof and two openings 20 are provided in said top wall between each pair of transversely aligned openings 17. The openings 19 and 20 are substantially smaller than the openings 15, 16, 17 and 18, all of which are of the same diameter and of a diameter somewhat larger than the diameter of a conventional object ball 21 used in playing pool or pocket billiards, as seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 2, 3, 4 and 8, a ring 22 of a resilient material, preferably rubber, is bonded or secured in any other conventional manner to the underside of the top wall 11 around each ofthe openings 15, 16, 17 and 18. Each ring 22 is of substantial width and has an outer diameter larger than said openings and an inner diameter or opening 23 smaller than the opening beneath which it is disposed and somewhat smaller than the diameter of the ball 21. The upper surface of the inner portion of the ring which protrudes inwardly from the top wall opening, with which said ring is associated, is beveled as seen at 24.

The upper surface of the top wall 11 is provided with longitudinal center markings or lines 25 at each end thereof with transverse center markings or lines 26 at each side thereof.

To rack up the 15 object balls 21 on the playing surface 15, a ball 21 is positioned in each opening 15 and 16' and remaining 10 ballsare positioned and supported by the 10 smaller openings 19 and 20. The halls located in the openings 15' and 16 are supported by the rings 22, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 8, which have sufficient rigidity to support the weight of the balls. The two end portions 27 of the flange 12 have fingerreceiving openings 28, one of which is shown in FIG. 7, by which the rack can be lifted and placed on the table surface 15 crosswise thereof and with one longitudinal side 29 of the flange l2 abutting against the cushion 30 of one endof the table 16 and with the transverse centerlines 26 in alignment with the conventional diamond 31 of said end of the table, which is located midway of its side edges.

The balls 21, disposed in the openings 15 and 16', are displaced downwardly from their initial positions, supported by the rings 22, to positions resting on the playing surface 15, as illustrated in FIG. 4. The inner portion of the ring 22 is deflected downwardly and outwardly, as seen in FIG. 3, as the horizontal center portion of the ball passes therethrough in moving from its position of FIG. 2 to its position in FIG. 4, after which the ring 22 resumes its normal position when the ball 21 has come to rest on the surface 15.

The height of the top wall 11 and rings 22 and the diameters of the ring openings 23 is such that the inner edges of the rings 22, as defined by the openings 23, contact the balls 21 when said balls are resting on the surface 15, for accurately locating the five object balls being positioned by the rack. To accomplish this, it will be noted that the top wall 11 is disposed above the level of the cushion 30 when the rack is resting on surface 15 and, accordingly, the flange 12 is sufficient height so that one of its longitudinal sides can abut one of the cushions 30 when the rack is resting on the surface 15.

The rack 10 is then lifted vertically leaving the five object balls 21 which have been displaced downwardly through the openings 15' and 16 correctly positioned in spaced apart relation on the surface 15. Five of the remaining 10 balls 21, are then removed from the openings 19 and 20 and positioned in the openings 15 and 16', and the aforedescribed operation is then repeated for racking five balls in the same manner at the other end of the table 16, or in the center of the table. In racking the balls in the center of the table, the rack 10 is disposed lengthwise of the table and the transverse center lines 26 are aligned with the conventional diamonds 32 which are disposed on the top surfaces of the longitudinal sides of the table, midway of its ends, and the centerlines 25 are aligned with the diamonds 31 at the ends of the table.

FIG. 1 shows five of the balls 21 racked at one end of the table, five more racked midway of the table ends, and the remaining five balls supported by the rack and about to be racked at the other table end. After the fifteen object balls have been racked on the table, as heretofore described and the rack has been removed from the table, the player places a cue ball, not shown, in any desired position on the playing surface 15 and using a pool cue, attempts to pocket the 15 object balls 21 without missing or scratching. If necessary, a second and possibly a third cue ball is used if scratches are made with the initial and second cue balls, before the 15 balls have been pocketed, and the play's score is determined by the number of object balls 21 which are pocketed and by the number of cue balls employed.

The openings 17 can be utilized in lieu of the openings 16 or the openings 18 can be utilized in lieu of the openings 16 or 17 for varying the spacing between each group of five object balls when racked on the table surface 15 for increasing the degree of difficulty in pocketing the object balls, as heretofore described.

In order to maintain the top wall 11 precisely horizontal or parallel to the playing surface 15, the underside of the central portion of the top wall ll may be provided with depending legs 33, as seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, which extend downwardly therefrom and which are disposed around the center opening 15, and which have lower ends disposed in the same plane as the bottom edge 14 of the flange 12, to prevent sagging of the central portion of the top wall 11.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may be resorted to, without departing from the function or scope of the invention.

lClaim:

1. In combination with a plurality of pool balls, a pool rack comprising a top wall having a plurality of pool ball receiving openings each of a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of said pool balls, support means extending downwardly from said top wall and adapted to rest on the playing surface of a pool or pocket billiard table for supporting said top wall in a plane substantially parallel to the playing surface and above and spaced therefrom a distance greater than the radius and less than the diameter of said openings, whereby said pool balls when passed downwardly through said openings into engagement with the table surface are located in predetermined spaced-apart relation to one another when the rack is removed from the playing surface, and a resilient ring secured to the top wall around each of said openings and having an inner diameter less than the diameter of the pool balls for supporting one of the pool balls on the rack, the inner portion of the ring being sufficiently resilient to permit said pool ball to be forced downwardly therethrough into a position in contact with the playing surface, the level of the underside of said ring relative to the playing surface and the inner diameter thereof being such that the ring throughout its inner circumference is in contact with a part of the upper hemisphere of said pool ball when the ball is supported on the playing surface.

2. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, the inner portion of the upper side of the ring being beveled downwardly toward its inner circumference,

3. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, said openings including a center opening and four comer openings equally spaced from said center opening.

4. A pool ball rack as in claim 3, and said top wall having additional openings of a smaller diameter for supporting addi tional pool balls prior to the racking thereof.

5. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, said support means including a vertical wall portion adapted to abut against a cushion of the table for correctly locating the balls to be racked relative to the cushion.

6. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, and said top wall having indexing means adapted to function with markings on the table for accurately locating the rack relative to the ends and sides of the playing surface.

II III II 

1. In combination with a plurality of pool balls, a pool rack comprising a top wall having a plurality of pool ball receiving openings each of a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of said pool balls, support means extending downwardly from said top wall and adapted to rest on the playing surface of a pool or pocket billiard table for supporting said top wall in a plane substantially parallel to the playing surface and above and spaced therefrom a distance greater than the radius and less than the diameter of said openings, whereby said pool balls when passed downwardly through said openings into engagement with the table surface are located in predetermined spaced-apart relation to one another when the rack is removed from the playing surface, and a resilient ring secured to the top wall around each of said openings and having an inner diameter less than the diameter of the pool balls for supporting one of the pool balls on the rack, the inner portion of the ring being sufficiently resilient to permit said pool ball to be forced downwardly therethrough into a position in contact with the playing surface, the level of the underside of said ring relative to the playing surface and the inNer diameter thereof being such that the ring throughout its inner circumference is in contact with a part of the upper hemisphere of said pool ball when the ball is supported on the playing surface.
 2. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, the inner portion of the upper side of the ring being beveled downwardly toward its inner circumference.
 3. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, said openings including a center opening and four corner openings equally spaced from said center opening.
 4. A pool ball rack as in claim 3, and said top wall having additional openings of a smaller diameter for supporting additional pool balls prior to the racking thereof.
 5. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, said support means including a vertical wall portion adapted to abut against a cushion of the table for correctly locating the balls to be racked relative to the cushion.
 6. A pool ball rack as in claim 1, and said top wall having indexing means adapted to function with markings on the table for accurately locating the rack relative to the ends and sides of the playing surface. 